Paper Mario Wish of the Star Rod
by akacesfan
Summary: A novelization of my favorite N64 game, Paper Mario! When Bowser kidnaps both Princess Peach and the Star Rod, how will Mario be able to save the Princess? With the help of some new friends, he just might be able to pull it off! Please read and review!
1. A Smashing Party

**Hi everyone! This is my first ever story, based off of my favorite N64 game. (I wanted to write this because there were only a few good novelizations on the site.) This story throws in lots of humor, but also has some thrilling action and overall, an exciting adventure! I really hope you guys enjoy, I poured a lot of effort into this.**

**Chapter 1**

**A Smashing Party**

Far up in the sky, farther than anyone could even imagine, there rested a town called Star Haven. Here, many star kids walked about, minding their own business. It was a particularly warm night as the night sky was filled with stars glistening in an almost magical way. In the center of it all was a massive shrine with a large set of stairs leading to the entrance. Here, the seven Star Spirits guarded the Star Rod. The Star Rod is a rod that allows any of the Star Spirits to grant anyone's wishes. Using the power of the Star Rod, they watched over the Mushroom Kingdom, granting wishes to those that asked for one.

Suddenly, an old magikoopa flew into the shrine. Just by looking at her it was obvious her favorite colors were purple and pink. The purple cloak she was wearing had dashes of pink on the sleeves, and her hat was colored in the same fashion, the only exception being that the pink was on the brim of that hat. She was wearing glasses as well, and her hair was bleached white. All she did was give an evil laugh because she knew what was going to happen next.

A loud whirring noise was heard before a large hovercraft flew into the room. It was painted orange and green and had a creepy clown face on the front of it. Inside of the ship was the one and only Bowser Koopa! He gave an evil laugh before growling in a deep, beastly voice, "What a piece of cake! With this Star Rod, at long last, I can finally defeat my archenemy, Mario! I'll take that, thank you very much!"

Bowser flew over toward the Star Rod, but was quickly halted by Eldstar, the oldest of the Star Spirits. "Bowser! You simply cannot…" Those were the only words that came out of his mouth before he was interrupted by Bowser. "Do it Kammy Koopa!" He yelled to the magikoopa.

Kammy complied, blasting some sort of dark magic at the Star Spirits. The magic had a paralyzing effect that kept the Star Spirits from moving. Right after Kammy used the magic she hissed to Bowser, "We need to hurry! That magic only lasts for about a minute!"

"I'm on it," Bowser replied. He swooped in to steal the Star Rod. Once he had it, he gave an evil laugh. "Now let's test this thing out!" Bowser than pointed the Star Rod at each of the Star Spirits, and one by one, they were sealed away. Kammy hissed again, "Umm… not to spoil your fun, but we seriously need to get out of here!"

"Aww...fine." Bowser pouted. "Darn Magikoopa, always ruining my fun." After Bowser finished his mini temper tantrum, he and Kammy bolted out of the shrine. Star Haven was in serious trouble, and all of the residents of the little town could tell just by the sight of a crazed looking flying vehicle, followed by a magikoopa.

Meanwhile, down in the Mushroom Kingdom, no one knew about the situation in Star Haven. Not even Mario, the plumber who had saved the Mushroom Kingdom many times knew of the situation. He was in his house sitting at the table when he heard a loud voice yell "Mail Call!"

Mario instantly knew it was the friendly paratroopa postman was. He went outside and waved to the paratroopa before he flew away. Meanwhile, Mario retrieved the mail and went back inside the house. Luigi saw Mario with the mail and asked, "Hey Mario, what did you get in the mail? I've been waiting for the latest issue of Newsmonth, but it still hasn't come in yet!" Luigi walked over to the mail pile and saw a particular letter pique his interest. He shuffled through the letters until he found it. "Hey Mario! We got a letter from Princess Peach!" called Luigi. Mario, now interested, walked over to Luigi. "I'll read it to you, okay?" Luigi asked as he opened the letter. Mario nodded, and Luigi began reading.

"I'm throwing a party at my castle today! Mario and Luigi, I would be honored if you both could attend. Many guests from different towns are hoping to meet you. There will be tasty sweets and all kinds of entertainment! I hope to see you here soon!"

"Wow Mario, sounds like quite the party, huh?" Luigi awed in marvel. Mario nodded, and they began the (rather short) journey to Peach's Castle. After walking through Toad Town, the pair arrived at the castle. It was elegant to say the least, and it was certainly a well-planned party. Just by looking, Mario could make out guests from at least three or four different towns. Luigi pretty much spoke Mario's thoughts out loud when he said, "What a magnificent castle! I never get used to this place. It looks like lots of guests are already here." Mario nodded in agreement and explained to Luigi that he was going to go and find Princess Peach.

"Alright Mario. I'm going to socialize around the party while you look for Peach," Luigi explained. Mario nodded, and then set off to the higher floors to look for the Princess. A short while later after climbing lots and lots of stairs, Mario found Peach in the middle of a hallway on the 3rd floor. As soon as Peach saw Mario, she instantly smiled and walked over to Mario. "Oh Mario! You came to the party to see me! You're so sweet! Thank you!"

Mario asked why the Princess was way up on the third floor.

The princess explained, "I was just resting a bit. It gets so tiring, greeting all of those guests out there! Nobody will bother us here. Shall we relax and chat, just the two of us?" Mario nodded yes, and Peach continued talking. "It was a lovely day today, so I'm sure it's comfortable on the balcony right now. Would you accompany me Mario?" Just as the two began walking, the castle suddenly started to shake. The two of them nearly lost their balance, and Peach yelled "What was that!" Suddenly, the ground around the castle began to form cracks, and soon after that, the castle actually began to rise up into the sky! However, attached to the bottom of the castle was Bowser's Castle. Just minutes later, the castle was in deep space, and nobody could leave the castle now.

As soon as the commotion stopped, Peach turned her attention to Mario by saying, "Oh, are you alright Mario? What in the world was that?" Peach looked out the window and nearly collapsed from the shock. "Oh my! Look Mario! It's still daytime, isn't it? …But I can see stars outside!"

Pretty much every question that the two had was answered when Bowser crashed through the window in his clown car followed by Kammy Koopa. He crashed down onto the floor, and Peach was shocked. Bowser laughed evilly and said, "Long time no see Princess Peach!"

Peach was furious that Bowser had ruined her party. "Bowser, you ruined my grand party! How could this be? Wait; was it you that made the ground shake?"

Bowser just laughed again and said, "Yeah, that was me! I lifted your castle into the sky! It's sitting on my castle now! Bet you weren't expecting that, huh? Ha, this castle is now under my control now, my dear. You will obey me!" Bowser started stomping toward the Princess when all of the sudden, Mario moved himself between the Princess and Bowser, then took a fighting stance toward Bowser. Bowser wasn't surprised. He then said in a sarcastic tone, "Huh? What? It's Mario!" Bowser then clarified by saying, "Not really. I expected you to turn up just as I thought you would. You're just as annoying as ever. Unfortunately for you, you can't do anything this time!"

Peach rolled her eyes and groaned. She then said, "Bowser, haven't you learned your lesson by now? You can't defeat Mario! Just give up already and I wouldn't have to waste so much of the kingdom budget on military! There are roads that need to be fixed you know."

Bowser then laughed again, and spoke with confidence. "True, true, I've had my problems in the past. But this time, it's different."

Peach interrupted Bowser by saying, "Don't you say that every time?"

Bowser just ignored the snarky comment and continued. "This time I'm gonna win! OK tough guy, let's go!" Those were fighting words to Mario, and he immediately jumped on the Koopa, causing Bowser to slightly wince in pain. Mario was slightly vulnerable though, and Bowser used the split second to smack Mario, hurting him about as much as the jump hurt Bowser. They repeated that same sequence again. Mario went in for a third jump, but this time Bowser's slap missed. He then taunted Mario by saying, "Good ol' Mario, always fighting until the end. You've always been a thorn in my side. But today, you're pathetic little attacks won't beat me." Bowser then pulled out the Star Rod and showed it off. He then proceeded to brag about how he stole it from Star Haven. This only made Mario even angrier. After Bowser was done yammering on about the Star Rod, he then used the power of the Star Rod to make himself stronger, which caused him to glow in a variety of colors.

"How do you like that, baby!" Bowser bragged. He then stomped over to Mario and smacked him again, only this time, the smack felt about three times as painful. Mario was feeling winded already, but fought through the feeling and went for another jump. However, Bowser didn't even flinch. There was no pain whatsoever from that jump. Bowser evilly laughed, then proceeded to taunt Mario. "Is that the best you've got? How sad! You'd best take some vitamins, because that didn't hurt at all!" Bowser marched over and smacked Mario again. Mario was on the ropes now, but he knew he couldn't give up, especially when Peach was watching. He mustered up all of his remaining strength, and then jumped on Bowser. However, because he was invincible, he didn't hurt Bowser at all.

Bowser then bragged by saying "Yep, just as I expected, Mario's no match for the new me! It's not even worth my time to toy with you anymore, Mario. It's time to end this! Here we go Mario! Good night!" Flames began to gather in Bowser's mouth, and at this point, Mario knew he was screwed. He tried his best to dodge, but the flames hit him dead center, and Mario was knocked out.

Peach was now officially panicking. "Oh no! Mario! Get up now!" Meanwhile, Bowser was bragging. "Yes! Oh yeah! I did it! I finally beat my old archrival, Mario! Yes!"

Kammy Koopa showered him with praise. "Congratulations on your victory Your Viciousness! That's why you're the king!"

Bowser replied, "Oh it gets even better! Now that I have this Star Rod, all of my wishes will come true! No one can stop me now!" He then turned to look at Mario's unconscious body. "Well, well, well. I might as well get rid of Mario. He's no good for anyone, that's for sure!" He used the power of the Star Rod to strike Mario with lightning, blasting him out of the window and into the night sky. Peach's panicking intensified. She then screamed, "Oh no! Mario!" She then began sobbing, not knowing what will happen to Mario.

Bowser stomped over to Peach. "It's no use crying, my dear. Mario will never save you now. You might as well get over it." This only made Peach slap Bowser out of frustration. Bowser didn't do anything after that though because he was too busy enjoying the victory.

Meanwhile, Mario was falling. He had been falling for almost twenty minutes, and he had just entered the actual sky. No one knew what would happen to Mario. It was all a mystery, where he'd land, how shaken up he'd be. Even his survival of the fall was a major question mark. The only way to find out was to wait…

**Alright, so I left you guys on kind of a cliffhanger there. Next time, we'll find out Mario's fate and meet a few in-game characters as well! Please remember to review! Thank you and have a nice day!**


	2. Hitting the Ground Falling

**Hey guys! I finished this chapter a bit early so you guys are getting a bit of an early present! Sorry if this chapter is short, but I think it turned out fairly well. Let me know what you guys think!**

**Chapter 2**

**Hitting the Ground...Falling?**

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><p>After almost a half hour of falling, Mario finally hit the ground. He had been unconscious for the entire fall, so he didn't know that he had been knocked out of Princess Peach's castle and had fell. Mario had landed in a forest clearing, seemingly in the middle of nowhere. All of the sudden, the seven Star Spirits' image appeared around Mario. Obviously, because they were sealed away, they couldn't be there directly, so they used some of their remaining power to project their images around Mario.<p>

"Oh thank Heavens! He's been gravely injured, but he'll recover!" exclaimed an orange star with a pink bow whose name was Mamar.

The next star, a yellow star with a mustache, wasn't as optimistic. "But Bowser has the Star Rod! Now he's mightier than Mario. It's hopeless! All is lost!"

An older looking star with a large mustache calmed everyone down by saying, "Everybody just calm down. As long as we keep it together there is always hope. Now our fates are in Mario's hands. We must try to revive him. Gather round everyone. Send Mario your power!"

All of the Star Spirits did as they were told, sending all the power they could to the fallen plumber. Some star-shaped sparkles appeared nearby, but other than that, nothing happened. This exhausted the Star Spirits, because they really didn't have much power to begin with.

"Phew… that's it. That's all we can do for now. Mario… please get up… please," pleaded the older star. The Star Spirits, now drained of all power, disappeared one by one.

Meanwhile, at a nearby house, a young goomba named Goombaria was playing outside of her house when all of the sudden, she heard a loud crashing sound. Naturally, she followed the noise by ear to go investigate it. "It really sounded like something fell around here," said Goombaria. She then noticed the unconscious Mario. Not knowing that it was Mario, she began to walk toward the body. "Oh, who could that be?"

She began to look around the unconscious Mario to see if she could find any clues to recognize him. "This red hat… this red shirt… those overalls. Could this really be Mario? It must be!" Goombaria then tried every possible method to wake him up, including shouting, lightly nudging him, and even resorting to a light headbonk or two. She began to panic slightly, saying, "Oh no! He won't wake up! Oh, oh! What am I going to do?" She ran back to her house, and along the way, she screamed some of the names of her family members. "Dad! Goompa! Goombario!" She screamed.

Mario was still sleeping, but this time, he was in the warmth and comfort of a Toad House, which is basically an inn. Soon, the older Star Spirit from the group of Star Spirits that tried to revive him appeared in his dream. "Mario… can you hear me Mario?" the Star Spirit asked. "I'm Eldstar, a Star Spirit… I have something very important to tell you. It concerns the princess, and all of the Mushroom Kingdom. But sadly, I haven't the strength to talk to you here. Mario, I need to have you come to Shooting Star Summit. Please… Mario… we Star Spirits will be waiting for you at the summit." Eldstar then vanished from Mario's dream. Just moments later, Mario finally woke up. He climbed out of bed, looking for the Star Spirit that appeared in his dream. A few seconds later, a Toad opened the door, and was filled with joy when he saw Mario standing up.

"Oh… Mario! I'm so happy to see you awake!" The Toad exclaimed with joy. "You haven't opened your eyes for days! Everyone's been worried sick!"

"Oh. Well where am I?" asked Mario.

"Oh, this place?" replied the Toad. "This is Goomba Village, a tiny village just to the west of Toad Town. The only residents that live here are me and a single family of Goombas." The Toad saw Mario's look on his face, but calmed is fears when he said, "The Goombas that live here are just the nicest folks you'll ever meet. They're the ones that found you unconscious in a forest and carried you here to get better!

"Whew… that's a relief. Anyways, a star with a mustache told me to go to Shooting Star Summit. Have you seen him?" Mario asked.

The Toad was confused. "Huh? A star with a mustache told you to go to Shooting Star Summit? Well I didn't see anything like that, and I'm certain no one came in or out of the house! I wonder Mario… maybe you just had a dream." The toad continued when he saw the quizzical look on Mario's face. "Although, it could have been some sort of message from a Star Spirit. They live in Star Haven. Shooting Star Summit is the closest place to Star Haven… so that would make sense. Anyways, I'm glad you've recovered. Those Goombas sure would be happy if you paid them a visit."

Mario took in all of the information and thanked to the Toad. He then went out the door and looked around. The Toad was right, besides the little toad house, the only other house of this "village" was the house of the Goomba family. Knowing that he needed to get going, he trotted up to the gate that lead to Goomba Road, which was the quickest way to Toad Town from Goomba Village. By the gate was a goomba who was working on the gate.

"Howdy Mario! Feeling better? Feel free to rest in our house," the goomba, whose name was Goompapa, said. Mario then explained he needed to leave so he could go to Shooting Star Summit. "You have to leave right now? Oh, Shooting Star Summit? Something important, no doubt. Well, I believe that the summit is near Toad Town. You'll have to wait a bit. I have to fix the gate before you can head out to the east. That earthquake the other day really did a job on it. Did you feel that quake? Shoot! I thought the sky was falling. Just relax and don't worry. I'll have this fixed in a jiffy," Goompa babbled on. As Mario walked away, he could here Goompapa grumbling, "The hinge on this gate is kind of tricky!"

Having absolutely nothing to do, Mario decided to take up Goompa's offer to rest in his house. The house was very nice looking, with many quaint, wooden antiques strewn around the house. An older goomba named Goomma was asleep in one of the wooden beds, so Mario tiptoed through the house to the door on the other side of the house. Outside was a veranda suspended over a small forest. Off to the side was another older looking goomba named Goompa who was currently fixing the veranda. Mario, not having anything better to do, decided to go talk to him.

Goompa appeared startled when Mario got his attention. After regaining his composure, he began to speak. "Oh, you startled me! Hm, yes, Mario, isn't it?" Goompa said. "So you've awakened at last! Good, I knew you'd pull through! Call me Goompa. I'm the Goomba Grandfather, so… I'm Goompa. I'm sorry, but would you mind giving me details later? I'm pretty busy fixing the veranda." Mario just nodded and walked back to the front yard.

When Mario reached the front yard, a Goomba with a blue hat walked up to Mario. "Hey Mario! I'm Goombario, you're biggest fan! You don't know what this means for me to meet you, seriously." Mario blushed slightly from the compliment. Goombario continued, "Oh! My dad was looking for you. He said the gate was fixed."

Mario was pretty happy about that, and replied with "Alright, that's great! Thanks for telling me!" He then walked over to the gate while Goombario sulked, thinking he wouldn't get a chance to talk to his idol again. When Mario reached the gate, Goompapa and Goombaria were waiting by the gate.

"Oh, what a job! Sorry to keep you waiting. The gate is finally fixed," said Goompapa. "If you take the road straight ahead, you'll reach Toad Town. I believe Shooting Star Summit is just beyond there. It's too bad you can't stay, I feel like I just met you. But, duty calls, I know. Come back and visit if you can."

Goombaria also threw in, "Best of luck Mario."

Mario had taken two steps when suddenly; out of nowhere, a shrill cackle was heard. Kammy Koopa (the magikoopa that was with Bowser when he beat up Mario), who was on her broom, flew right above the gate. Mario was genuinely shocked that she had come all the way out to Goomba Village to find him. Eventually, Kammy stopped flying, gave an evil cackle, and then began to speak. "My instincts were right. Mario, I can't believe you're walking on your feet after taking such a beating from King Bowser. You're a hardy one, all right! I was smart to come here and check on you."

"What's that Daddy? What's that weird flying thing?" Goombaria asked. She was both scared and curious, and really wanted to know what that "weird flying thing" was.

"Weird? Why you little… I am a beautiful Koopa with a beautiful name: Kammy Koopa! I wish I had time to teach you a lesson, brat. But no. Mario, hear this! It is useless for you to try and save Princess Peach. Ridiculous! Laughable! As you have seen, King Bowser is more powerful than even you can deal with this time! Here's a gift from him!"

Kammy cackled softly before using her magic to create a giant yellow block. When she raised her magic wand, the block was raised with the want. She spent a few seconds aiming the block, and then she lowered her wand, which caused the block to fall at a high speed, flattening the gate.

Kammy cackled again before taunting Mario. "Mario! You will kneel and weep when you see the wonderful changes King Bowser has made. The worlds are ours now!" Kammy cackled once more, then flew off into the clouds.

Goompapa was not happy, to say the least. "I just fixed that gate. Nobody say gate to me. Kammy Koopa, that fiend!" Goompapa mused angrily.

"Well isn't this just great," Mario whined. "What am I going to do now?"

Goombaira, after being quiet for awhile, spoke up. "Dad, we've just got to do something, right? Mario's gotta save the princess. No one else can do it!"

"Hey, I have an idea!" Goompapa exclaimed. "Maybe we can break the block with Goompa's hammer! I think he's fixing the veranda with it. Could you please go ask him for it?"

Mario nodded, and went back through the house to reach the veranda. Goomma was snoring loudly, so Mario tiptoed to the back of the house to reach the veranda. Mario stepped out the backdoor, expecting a veranda. But when Mario stepped out, there wasn't a veranda, just empty air. Moments later, gravity kicked in, and Mario fell into the woods below.

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><p><strong>Alright, so that's the end of the second chapter. Next time. we'll see where Mario lands after another fall. Please remember to review!<strong>


	3. The Whiny Brat and the New Adventure

**Hi faithful readers! Sorry it took forever to get this chapter up, I've been fairly busy over the last few days. Anyways, in today's chapter we will see what happens to Mario and we will also meet Mario's first partner. Please enjoy and remember to read and review!**

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><p>After falling for just a few seconds, Mario landed in front of what used to be the veranda. Piles of wood were strewn around everywhere by the side of the cliff where both Mario and the veranda landed. After lying around in pain for a few seconds, Mario stood up. Luckily for Mario, there was a path right next to where he landed, so as logic dictates, he began to follow the path. He had just started down the path when he saw Goompa walking toward him.<p>

"Oh…my back. Oh, it's you Mario!" exclaimed Goompa. He began to tell the tale of why he was here. "I remember a great crashing noise and then the veranda collapsed and I fell. Did you fall too?"

Mario nodded and replied, "Yes, I stepped out the door right into thin air."

"Just stepped out the door into thin air, did you?" asked Goompa. "Well, we're both OK. Problem is, we can't get home because of that block that's in the way." Goompa motioned for Mario to follow him to the giant yellow block in the middle of the path, the same kind that Kammy Koopa used the block Mario's path back at the Goomba house.

"This block shouldn't be here," stated Goompa in an obvious fashion. "Well, this will be a problem."

"But what about your hammer?" Mario questioned.

"A hammer? Oh, of course!" Goompa exclaimed. "Now where did it go? I was using it to fix the veranda, so it must be around here somewhere. It must have fallen somewhere over there in those bushes." Goompa motioned for Mario to follow him to the clump of bushes.

When the duo reached the clump of bushes, Goompa explained to Mario that the hammer was wooden and was in one of those bushes. Mario nodded and began to search random bushes. After about 20 minutes of bush searching, he finally found the hammer inside a bush that was way off to the side.

"Perfect!" Goompa exclaimed in a joyous fashion. "You'll be able to break yellow blocks and attack enemies with that hammer. We should be able to break that block in our path! Also, if you hit trees with the hammer, sometimes stuff might fall out."

Mario just nodded after taking in all of that information. He decided to test out the hammer by hitting a nearby tree. By the grace of the stars, when he hit it, a little doll that was shaped like Princess Peach fell out.

"Oh, that's the doll that Goombaria lost! I bet that if you give it back to her, she'd be overjoyed!" stated Goompa. Goompa motioned for Mario to follow him back to the block. Everything was just fine until a whiny voice shouted, "Hey! Who are you guys? This is my playground, idiots!" After that temper tantrum, he proceeded to shove Goompa out of the way and began to walk towards Mario.

It turned out the whiny voice belonged to a baby Koopa that was still in its eggshell. He continued to whine, "Nobody sets foot in here without my permission! Nobody! Prepare to start crying at the feet of Master Jr. Troopa!" Jr. Troopa yelled.

Meanwhile, Mario had a _very_ hard time taking him seriously, to the point where he had to stifle massive amounts of laughter. This only infuriated Jr. Troopa even more. "You think this is funny fat man! I was gonna be kinda nice, but forget it! You've made me mad now!" Jr. Troopa then proceeded to charge at Mario, initiating the battle.

"Mario, this is Jr. Troopa," stated Goompa. "He's the boss of the neighborhood gang, the Troopa Gang. A bit of a bully, obviously. He's more bark than bite. You can beat him easily. Just boost yourself and don't take any lip. I'll be cheering from the sidelines because of my bad back. Otherwise, I'd teach this punk a lesson!"

After Goompa's uncharacteristic outburst, Mario set to work. He decided to try out Goompa's hammer on Jr. Troopa, so he brought it down a Jr. Troopa for a hit right on the head. It was fairly painful to say the least.

"Ow… where'd you learn to fight like that," moaned Jr. Troopa. He fought through the aching pain in his head and went in to jump on Mario. However, right before he landed in Mario, Mario swung his hammer at Jr. Troopa and hit him in midair, knocking him back slightly. Jr. Troopa got right back up. Seconds later, Mario leaped straight into the air and landed square on Jr. Troopa.

"Mario, you've almost got him! Keep it up!" Goompa encouraged.

Jr. Troopa was on the ropes and he knew it. The only way he would stand a chance was with his special attack. Jr. Troopa ran at full speed ramming into Mario. Mario didn't want to admit it, but that attack hurt a little bit.

"Yeah, how do you like the taste of my special attack, full power!" Jr. Troopa said in a mocking tone. Mario was sick of playing around. He smashed his hammer down and Jr. Troopa one last time. Jr. Troopa had enough.

"Shoot! I was winning too!" Jr. Troopa whined. "I'll be back Mario! I mean it!" Jr. Troopa stormed off down the path, angry at his loss.

"Anyways, we should probably go and break that block," said Goompa. Mario agreed and smashed the giant yellow block into pieces with his new hammer. However, before they set off, Mario picked up an unused Fire Flower off the side of the path. The duo then proceeded to follow the path through the wooded area without trouble until they saw some rather mean-looking Goombas.

"Heads up Mario! I see bad Goombas ahead! They're loyal to Bowser, so if they see you, they'll attack without hesitation," warned Goompa. Mario nodded and bonked the first Goomba he saw with the hammer. The Goomba moaned something about Mario being a "cheap shot" before he fainted. As Mario and Goompa continued to follow the path, they also came upon flying Goombas known as Paragoombas. Mario jumped on each Paragoomba successfully and they each fainted as well. Just before the duo reached the gate back to the house, however, they came across a Goomba with a spike on its head.

"This is a Spiked Goomba. Don't jump on the spike, or you'll get hurt," stated Goompa. Mario just groaned at how obvious that statement was and just hit the Goomba with his hammer, defeating it. As the Spiked Goomba fainted, it muttered something about how Bowser said the spike would "protect him from everything." Mario just couldn't believe how stupid the Goombas/Bowser was for believing it.

Eventually, Mario and Goompa reached the house again. After Goompa unlocked the gate, Mario and Goompa were reunited with Goombario and Goombaria.

"Never worry kids, here I am. Thanks to young Mario here, I made it back alright," said Goompa to Goombario and Goombaria.

Both of the Goomba kids were obviously relieved to hear that. "Goompa, I was very, very worried about you!" exclaimed Goombaria. "Really worried!"

"Sorry kids, I didn't mean to make you fret. You just take it easy now, I'm back safe and sound," said Goompa. He then turned his attention to Mario. "Now, before I forget, I've decided to give you something Mario. Wait here for a moment." Goompa then proceeded to go inside of the house.

"Hey, that looks like the doll that Goombaria lost!" Goombario noticed, looking at the doll that Mario had found in the woods behind the Goomba family's home. "Goombaria's been looking all over for that doll. Would you give it back to her?"

Mario nodded and handed the doll to Goombaria, who was overjoyed. "It's my dolly! Dolly, dolly! You're back! Thank you so much!" Goombaria exclaimed. "I'm so happy. My sweet dolly, don't you ever get lost again!" Goombaria then checked her pockets and pulled out a shiny, diamond shaped object. "Here's a present from me! Look at the pretty glitter!" Goombaria said before giving the shiny object to Mario. When Mario was done admiring it, Goombaria also gave Mario a little peck on the cheek. Mario blushed from embarrassment after that.

"You always seem to beat up your enemies," noticed Goombario. "Do you work out?"

Before Mario could answer, Goombario continued speaking. "I study self-defense by reading books by the masters and listening to Dad and Goompa. I also exercise everyday so I can be strong like you! It's starting to show, too! I'm getting big muscles!"

"Yeah, Goombario's head is as heard as a rock now!" Goombaria said in an almost fangirl-like tone. "When he does his headbonk move it really, really hurts!"

"Oh be quiet Goombaria! You're embarrassing me. Of course, it _is_ true…"

However, before Goombaria could come up with a comeback, Goompa was back. "Sorry to have kept you waiting Mario," Goompa apologized.

"It's okay Goompa," said Goombario. "We're just rapping with Mario."

"Rapping, huh? Sorry. I wanted to give you this, Mario." Goompa then handed Mario a green, boot shaped pin.

"This is called a badge," explained Goompa. "If you wear this, you'll be able to do a Power Jump, which will increase the power of your jump attack. However, you can only wear a limited number of badges. You'll know when you've reached the limit because you won't be able to pin the badge on yourself. I imagine that as you rescue the Star Spirits, you'll be able to wear more badges."

"Alright, but how do I do a Power Jump?" Mario asked.

"Oh, that's easy. Just focus and jump with as hard as you can. This will drain some energy from you, so try and use it sparingly, OK?"

"Got it."

"Adventure… you're so lucky!" Goombario said in a slightly jealous tone. "Princess-rescuing is so cool. I really want to be an adventurer one day."

"Me too!" Goombaria chimed in.

"Oh, here's an idea!" Goompa blurted out. "Goombario, perhaps the timing is perfect. You are no longer a child, and evil times are upon us. I'm sure Mario will agree… you should accompany him on his journey."

At that point, Goombario looked like he was about ready to jump for joy. He then burst out, "What! Really! May I go Goompa! May I really go! Mario, you won't regret this!"

"I'm sure I won't." replied the plumber. "What can you do?"

"Well, not to brag, but I have a really nasty headbonk! Plus, I can tell you about pretty much everything you need to know about a place, person, or enemy!"

"Mario," Goompa began. "I'm sure Goombario will prove to be a worthy companion. Now if you'll excuse me it's time for my nap. I know it's only 4 P.M, but good-byes make this old Goomba get weepy." Goompa then walked back into the house.

"Alright, so should we head out?" Mario asked.

"Wait a second," replied Goombario. "You look tired. Maybe we should rest in the Toad House before we leave."

"Good idea. Once we've rested, we can leave."

"Just wait a second young man!" boomed a female voice. A Goomba that looked like she was in her mid-40's walked up to Goombario. "Goombario…" she began. "Make sure you wear your sweater when it's cold outside! And remember to eat breakfast everyday! And…"

About 45 minutes later, Goombario's mother _finally_ stopped nagging Goombario. All he could really say to all of that was, "Yes mom…" Now that the nagging was finally over, the duo of Mario and Goombario headed over to the Toad House to rest.

The next day, Mario and Goombario woke up at around 8 A.M. After a quick breakfast, they smashed the bloc k that was blocking the gate and set off on a new adventure down Goomba Road…

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><p><strong>So that's it for today! Next time we will see what happens on Goomba Road. Please remember to review, because those of you that do will get a free cookie!<strong>

**PS - Sorry that the ending was kind of lame. Oh well, I guess it didn't turn out too bad.**


	4. Down Goomba Road They Go

**Hey readers! First of all, I'm sorry I took almost two weeks to update, but I've been super busy lately! Anyways, today's chapter involves the journey down Goomba Road, which is full of action and laughter! I hope you enjoy, and please remember to review!**

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><p>Goomba Road's scenery was very similar to the scenery of the Goomba family's backyard . The path winded through a verdant grassland, dotted with the occasional tree here and there. Mario and Goombario had just begun their journey down Goomba Road when they saw a sign. Mario, whose interest was now piqued, bent down to read the sign.<p>

"Beware of Goombas," the sign stated. There was also a picture of a Goomba right next to the sign.

"Hey! That's kind of offensive, you know," said Goombario. Suddenly, the picture of the Goomba leaped out of the sign towards Mario's face. Luckily, the plumber was able to roll out of the way just in time to avoid getting his face mauled.

"Bet you weren't expecting that, now were you," bragged the Goomba who had leapt out of the sign. "Oh you were all bent over reading the sign and then suddenly I attacked! I'm a ninja! I'm the…" The Goomba's bragging was interrupted when Mario whacked him with his hammer, defeating the Goomba in one swing.

"Cheap shot," muttered the Goomba before fainting.

"Are all of Bowser's minions this stupid?" Goombario asked.

"Kind of," replied Mario. "Most of them are either stupid or average intelligence. There are a few of them that are smart, but that's rare."

"Oh, I see."

However, a pair of Goombas overheard the conversation and needless to say, they weren't pleased. "Did they just call us stupid?" asked one of the Goombas.

"You know what?" The other one replied. "I think they did! Let's get 'em!" The pair of Goombas rushed Mario and Goombario. However, they were prepared for the Goombas. Mario took out one Goomba by jumping on it just as it was about to ram him, meanwhile, Goombario took out the other one by headbonking it.

"Maybe we shouldn't jump to conclusions…" groaned one of the two Goombas before fainting.

Mario and Goombario just groaned at the high levels of stupidity and moved on again. After about an hour or so of walking and defeating Goombas that weren't as stupid as the ones before them, the duo came across another sign. Mario kept his distance as he read the sign just in case something else would pop out of the sign.

"Eat a Mushroom to regain energy!" the sign stated. This one had a picture of a Mushroom on it.

As expected, the Mushroom jumped out of the sign. The duo was a little tired, so they decided to split the Mushroom. Both Mario and Goombario felt re-energized and were ready to move on. However, right next to the sign, they found a hexagon-shaped pin with a star on it.

"Mario! That's a badge called Close Call!" exclaimed Goombario. "If you put it on, enemies' attacks will sometimes miss if you're tired or almost out of health!"

"Oh, that's cool!" Mario said. He pinned the badge to his overalls and motioned to Goombario that he was ready to move on.

After another half-hour of walking and defeating Goombas of various types, the two of them reached a small cliff wall with a spring next to it. However, before they could use the spring, two oversized Goombas (one red and one blue) at the top of the cliff walked towards the edge.

"Hey! Hold it right there!" shouted the blue oversized Goomba. "You! Yeah you, suspicious guy! Don't move!"

"Aha! You're Mario!" yelled the blue oversized Goomba. "I knew it. You can't go past here, Mr. Big Shot! It's a direct order from the Goomba King, that's right! I'm sorry, but the only way through here is through the Goomba Bros. That's me, Red Goomba, and my brother, Blue Goomba! Let's get him!"

"Wow, those are such creative names," groaned Mario sarcastically. "Goombario, what do you know about these guys?"

"Well, as you heard in their little speech, those are the Goomba Bros," Goombario began. "These guys have the same attacks as a normal Goomba, pretty much the only thing they can do is bonk you over the head. Mario, you can totally take these guys. They just have a bit more endurance than a normal Goomba."

"Alright, good to know. Thanks Goombario!" Mario opened the battle by whacking Red Goomba with his hammer. Red Goomba, however, was not too pleased with that.

"Lucky shot, punk!" Red Goomba spat at Mario. "But that's nothing compared to my headbonk!" Red Goomba then leaped at Mario's face, but Mario quickly and calmly slid out of the way.

"What? How did I miss?" Red Goomba guffawed.

"Maybe you shouldn't warn me that you're going to attack," replied Mario sarcastically.

"Whatever."

Meanwhile, Goombario was in his own little duel with Blue Goomba, and was holding his own to say the least. Blue Goomba was getting quite frustrated that Goombario's headbonk seem to hurt just as much as his own. What was also frustrating was that every time that he went in for a headbonk, Goombario would just roll out of the way and counter. Eventually, Blue Goomba realized that if he wanted to stay in this battle, he would need to try something desperate. The first step of his plan was to dodge Goombario's attacks for just a little longer…

Back over where Mario and Red Goomba were dueling, Mario had him on the ropes. Red Goomba was looking kind of tired. Mario, wanted to finish him off quickly, mainly because he thought that if he didn't Red Goomba would try something desperate. He decided to try his new Power Jump move to try and finish off Red Goomba. He began to focus his energy. Red Goomba noticed this and seized this opportunity to attack. It worked, knocking Mario off balance. Mario decided he'd need to focus a bit more directly this time. Red Goomba tried to attack again, but this time, Mario was ready. Just before the headbonk reached Mario, he jumped straight up into the air to dodge the headbonk, then landed square on the head of Red Goomba. The Power Jump was too much for Red Goomba to handle, and he fainted right after that jump.

Blue Goomba immediately realized that something was wrong and rushed over to Red Goomba to see what had happen. "Red?" Blue Goomba said. "Come on, wake up! Are you OK?" It took a moment for Blue to realize that Red was knocked out, but when Blue Goomba realized that, it made him angry to say the least. "OK Mario and you little punk Goomba. No one beats up my brother and gets away with it!" Using his rage as a motivator, Blue Goomba tried to ram into Mario and Goombario. Mario got out of the way, but Goombario didn't get so lucky, Blue Goomba ran him over.

"Are you okay Goombario?" Mario asked.

"Yeah, just a little dazed," replied Goombario.

Blue Goomba was getting ready to headbutt Goombario again, but this time, Goombario was ready. Just as he was about to slam into Goombario, Goombario jumped out of the way. Luckily for the duo, Blue Goomba tripped, leaving him vulnerable. Mario used this opportunity to smack him with his hammer, ending the battle.

Somehow, both of the Goomba Bros. got up at the same time. They cursed at Mario and Goombario, promising they would be back eventually before jumping on the spring and running away.

"I know they're idiots and cowardly but… that's just sad," was all Goombario could say about the situation. Mario agreed and the duo used the springboard to get up the cliff and continue their journey down Goomba Road. There weren't any problems until they reached a castle-like structure, about two stories tall, that happened to be right next to a large canyon. The castle looked like it had one room on each floor as well as a balcony on the top floor. "Hey, Mario," began Goombario. "Didn't there used to be a bridge there?"

"Yeah, you're right," replied the plumber. "I wonder what's going on…" Mario's thoughts were interrupted when Goombario noticed the Goomba Bros. at the door to the castle.

"The Goomba Bros! What are they doing here?"

"I really don't know. Let's hide behind those bushes so we can listen in," replied Mario, pointing at a nearby clump of bushes. Goombario nodded and the duo dived in so they could listen.

"Goomba King, let us in!" Red Goomba yelled in a whiny, high pitched voice.

"Yeah!" added his brother. "Mario beat us up!"

"Goomba King? What's that?"

"I'll tell you in a second…"

Their thoughts were interrupted with a loud stomp that shook the ground with its mighty force.

Goombario was startled by this. "What was that? Could that be the Goomba King?" The loud and forceful stomping continued, each one shaking the ground so violently it launched the duo off of the ground. Suddenly, the stomping stopped abruptly and then the Goomba Bros. appeared on the balcony of the tower.

"I told you we'd be back!" Red Goomba yelled at the duo obnoxiously. As if that wasn't bad enough, the biggest goomba the duo had ever seen in their lives popped up right after them. This Goomba had a small, white mustache near his lips and a crazed look in his eyes. He was also wearing striped pants, alternating colors of red and white. A small crown also rested atop his head.

The Goomba King then began to speak in a voice that was a cross between commanding and crazed. "So Mario, it's true. You've made it this far and I respect you for that! Unfortunately, this is as far as you'll ever get! Because I, the great and powerful King Goomba, will see it that you advance no farther!

"You hear that Mario?" Red Goomba chimed in. "No further! Are you scared, little man?"

"Yeah, you're scared alright!" Blue Goomba yelled. "Wanna say you're sorry?"

"Holy crud!" Goombario exclaimed. "That Goomba King is huge! I'm sure you can take him though. Let's get him!"

"Ready to meet my wrath Mario?" The Goomba King asked in an almost psychotic tone. "You better be!" The three Goombas then proceeded to jump down from their castle towards Mario and Goombario.

"Beat him up Goomba King!" Red Goomba shouted.

"We've got your back!" Blue Goomba shouted.

"Leave him to me!" Goomba King responded.

"Mario, I think we should take out the Goomba Bros. first," said Goombario. "They probably don't have much energy left because we just beat them up back there."

Mario nodded. He began the battle by hammering Red Goomba while Goombario headbonked Blue Goomba.

Meanwhile, the Goomba Bros. were so tired that they hid behind some of the nearby bushes, which was cowardly to say the least.

"Are they really doing that?" Goombario gawked. "They _**cannot**_ be serious!"

"Get 'em Goomba King!" The Goomba Bros. cheered. "Beat them up!"

"Oh I will!" The Goomba King shouted in an enraged tone.

The Goomba King then began to circle around Mario. When the time was right, he went in and headbutted Mario, knocking him over. Then, the Goomba Bros. jumped out of the bushes and they both began to rush Goombario. However, Goombario dived at the last second and the two Goomba Bros. ran right into each other. Goombario was able to finish off Blue Goomba with a headbonk, but Red Goomba was able to get up before he could get headbonked too. Mario was about to try and finish off Red Goomba, but at the last second, the Goomba King purposely fell over and squashed Mario. Mario crawled out from underneath the girth and hammered the Goomba King. Mario tried to get another blow in, but Red Goomba pinched in and knocked Mario away at the last second.

Mario and Goombario needed a plan and the faster the better. The Goomba King's sheer size put him at a huge advantage, and Red Goomba was always there to make sure Mario couldn't finish his attacks. Goombario then noticed a nearby tree with some of the largest Goomnuts he had ever seen. "Hey wait a second… that's it! The tree!" He turned to Mario and whispered something in his ear.

"Good idea! You can distract Red Goomba while I take care of the Goomba King!" Mario replied.

Goombario nodded. "Hey, Red Loser!" he shouted. "I beat up your pathetic little brother in one hit! Wanna come try the same with me? Free shot!"

"Oh, that does it!" Red Goomba yelled back with rage boiling inside of him. I'll show ya free shot!" Red Goomba then charged towards Goombario, who was standing right in front of the Goomba King's castle. Red Goomba, however, being the idiot he is, didn't notice that. So when Goombario hopped out of the way at the last second, he ran straight into the castle wall, which instantly knocked him out.

"That was pretty stupid…" was all Goombario could say after that.

Meanwhile, Mario was luring the Goomba King over to where the Goomnut Tree was. In order not to make the Goomba King suspicious, he went in for a few swings of his hammer, but purposely missed so the Goomba King couldn't counterattack. Finally when the Goomba King was close enough to the Goomnut Tree, Mario swung his hammer at the Goomnut Tree, causing the giant Goomnuts on the tree to fall right onto the Goomba King's head. The blow to the head from the Goomnuts disorientated the Goomba King, as he was now stepping in random directions while mumbling gibberish.

"Wow, that blow to the head really messed him up," commented Goombario while headbonking the Goomba King.

Mario agreed and smacked the Goomba King with his hammer. That blow was enough to bring the Goomba King down for good.

"That was a king? I've seen stronger Koopas than him!" Mario said.

After about five minutes, the three Goombas regained consciousness. They all saw the look in the duo's eyes and immediately ran inside.

"Are they related or something… because the Goomba King is just as wimpy as the Goomba Bros," pondered Goombario. "Well, that's the least of our problems. We still have no clue how to get across that gorge." Just as he began to think, the duo heard voices coming from the Goomba King's tower. "Hey, maybe we should eavesdrop!" Mario nodded and the duo hid behind some nearby bushes to listen in.

"Now, are you positive that you hid the switch in a place where Mario can't find it?" The Goomba King asked.

"Oh yeah," replied Red Goomba. "I hid it in the bushes outside of the fortress!"

"What! Mario will find them for sure, you idiot!"

"Maybe he hasn't found it yet! We can still trick him!"

"How stupid are these guys, seriously?" Goombario wondered. "If you're going to argue about something important, don't argue in loud, obnoxious voices."

Mario agreed and headed over to the nearby clump of bushes. After a few minutes of rummaging through the bushes, he pulled out a large blue switch. However, before he could push it, the Goomba King appeared on the balcony of his castle. "Uhh… Mario, good fight and all," began the Goomba King in a "fake" friendly tone. "But I need to warn you of something. If you find a blue switch hidden around these parts, something bad will happen to me, uh I mean you if you press. A terrible fate!"

Mario held the switch up at the Goomba King. "Oh, does it look like this?"

"Yes! Don't press it!"

"Too late!" Mario stomped on the switch, which caused the Goomba King to freak out.

"What? You pressed it? Oh no-no-no-no-no-no-no-no-!"

At first, nothing happened. Suddenly, an earthquake started. The ground shook vigorously and nearby trees began to fall down. Mario and Goombario were struggling to keep their balance amidst the shaking. But the most worried of all was the Goomba King. His castle was collapsing right under his feet. The Goomba Bros. were running around the castle in panic. When the castle had fully collapsed, the Goomba King shouted "Ohhh noooooooo!" The castle then sprung up and transformed into a bridge, shooting the three Goombas in the air. "Curse you Mariooooooooo!"

"Wow," was all Goombario could say. "Hey, we can finally cross the bridge! Off to Toad Town!"

However, nobody knew that Kammy Koopa was watching…

"Oh dear," she sighed. "Lord Bowser isn't going to be happy about this."

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><p><strong>Yep, I love making Goombas (Goombario excluded) look really stupid. I always pictured the Goomba King as a psycho lunatic, so that's how I wrote him out. I hope I did good. Please remember to review, and you'll get a free cyber cookie!<strong>


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